After more than two years, I finally got behind the wheel again at Sebring International Raceway. Although I have raced at Sebring before, this race was on the shorter Green Park circuit which I haven't driven previously. The weekend was relatively laid back as I attempted to absorb as much information as possible for my next race at Daytona. I competed in the ninety minute TES enduro, with a short qualifying session prior to the race. Months of hard work paid off when I hit the track, as the car felt very solid. The driver, however, needed some work. I was somehow able to gain enough momentum to qualify on pole for the race. A short set back cut my qulifying short, because I thought the car was running too hot. After speaking to some fellow SRF racers afterwards, I found out the all of my temperatures were spot on and the car was running beautifully. This ws a huge relief considering the race started a prompt thirty minutes after qualifying.
The race went much better than expected. Although ninety minutes (or slightly less due to lightning warnings) of racing can be very hard on a car, my little SRF proved to be rigid and reliable. I got some very generous assistance from another group of SRF racers during my mandatory five minute pit stop to ensure everything went to plan. The result was 2nd place over-all and 1st place in class. I also managed the fastest lap of the race (by nearly two seconds) which is always a welcome bonus.
However, the main takeaway from the weekend was education. I learned more than I thought possible in the short eight hours of race day than I ever thought possible. Hopefully, I will be able to take all of this information with me to Daytona and translate it into another fantastic race weekend!
